Saint Francis Of Assisi: Patron Saint Of Animals, Merchants And Ecology

Not every saint had the perfect life story and acted exactly as they should. Many had sinful pasts but were able to turn their lives around by devoting themselves to God. Most of the time, it only takes one life-changing event to make the switch for sinner to saint. Saint Francis of Assisi is an perfect example of one of these saints. Francis is the Patron Saint of Animals, Merchants and Ecology now, but he did not always act in a saintly way. In the early years of his life, he made many poor decisions, but he was able to make a change that would last a forever with the help of one important event. Ultimately, he was able to change his ways and was given the title of Saint. Francis was born in Assisi, Umbria in 1181. His father was in France
when Francis was born, so his mother named and baptised him with the name Giovanni, after John the Baptist.
When his father returned and found out his name, he was upset and changed it. He did not want his son to be a man of God. He wanted his son to be a merchant and share the same love for France he had. This led him to the name Francisco. His father was a wealthy businessman, so Francis led a life full of luxuries. He was popular among his peers which resulted in him developing leadership qualities. Eventually, he became to the leader of a group of teens who partied all night, every night. Francis acted this way to make his father proud. The number one thing that made his father most proud was their shared love for France. Even with everything Francis had, he wanted more. He wanted to be a knight, so he joined in the war between Assisi and the enemy neighboring town. Many, many soldiers lost their lives. The ones who survived came from wealth and were taken prisoner. Francis was part of that group. He was released a year later, but the whole ordeal did not bring him any closer to God. He still continued to party all the time. A little while later, he was asked to join the Fourth Crusade. Given his desire for glory, he undoubtedly accepted, however, he did not last long. About a day in, he had a dream that God was telling him to
turn around and return home. He chose to follow what God told him and went home. This was the turning point in his life. Granted, his journey closer to God was not a fast one. He started by praying often and confessed his sins. God gave him an important test to see if he truly meant it. He wandered upon a leper one day. He could have simply left the man alone and helpless, but he instead chose to kiss the man. As Francis was leaving, he looked back and saw the man had disappeared. In that moment, he knew he had passed that test. Throughout his journey, he gave everything he had to God. His father was furious with him for doing this, so Francis declared that God was his Father. Eventually, Francis began to preach to others. He not only talked with people, but he enjoyed exchanged with animals as well. There are many stories of his interactions with them. One involves a wolf who was killing many townspeople. Francis talked to the wolf and told it to never act that way again. From that day one,the wolf obeyed him and even became a pet. Due to him having nothing, Francis developed an illness that he was never recover on. He went blind as a result of this illness. During this time, he wrote Canticle of the Sun. He died on October 4, 1226 at the age of 45.
Saint Francis of Assisi relates to me in many ways. In his early years, he lived a lifestyle where he was the center of his own world, not God. In a way, I am the same. I tend to spend more time doing what I want and do not let God in. I put myself in the center of my life instead of letting God be in the center. I think that knowing what I know now about Saint Francis, I can make a change too. I can give up some of “my time” to God and bring myself closer to Him. Another thing that Francis and I have in common is our love for animals. My whole life I have been raised with pets, more specifically cats. Some days, I find that I like animals more than people. My cats are more than just pets; they are my family. I can learn many things from Saint Francis’s sinful past and his saintly choices once he found God.
Saint Francis may have led a life that distanced himself from God, but he was able to find himself and God when he needed it most. Saint Francis is saint I can look up to for many reasons. He was able to put God first and loved and cared for animals. He is truly a saint with a past.